The Wedding Night
by honkiesinachurch
Summary: There aren't many Mary/Anna fics out there, so thought I'd write one. One-shot, set during S2E8 - Mary "helps" Anna on her wedding night. Yes some borrowing was done from "Fingersmith"...


"I'm a little afraid. I just don't know what men..._do_ really."

Anna peered in at the room again, then down at her feet, fidgeting. She looked quite troubled – the opposite of what Mary had hoped for. It was Anna and Bates' wedding night, and Mary had a room made up especially for them. She would not have it put to waste.

"Anna, that's just silly. You must know..."

Mary was cut short as Anna glanced up at her with a look of utter consternation. So she really doesn't know, Mary thought. Her face softened.

"I suppose I'm talking as someone with experience, though I'm not sure you should take my advice. You wouldn't want your lover to end up like mine did."

Mary smirked and raised an eyebrow. Anna giggled in spite of herself.

"Lady Mary that's not funny."

Anna's face darkened again. What if something did happen to her lover? What if a similar fate befell her husband? He was, after all, no longer young...

Mary must have guessed Anna's thoughts, for she replied,

"No it isn't funny, but it wasn't my fault at all. None of it was..."

She trailed off, lost in thought, then came back with a smile.

"Besides, it was discovered later that he suffered from a condition of some sort."

A condition? What if Bates was hiding some sort of "condition" of his own? But barring that, if everything went fine, Anna still had no idea _how_ it would go. She was generally a no-nonsense sort of person and knowledgeable of such things, but here, she was at a loss. It was always assumed that she knew about this particular thing, so no-one had explained it to her.

Mary suddenly brightened.

"I have an idea," she announced. "I know something of how events may proceed, so why don't we act out the two parts. I'll be Bates and you'll be...yourself!"

Anna looked sceptical.

"Act out the parts? And you'd play Bates? Lady Mary..."

Then an image popped into her head of Mary in her husband's clothing, limping about, and she smiled.

"My lady you can't be serious. You're pulling my leg, aren't you."

But Mary was serious, and curious. She wanted to see how far this would go, how far she could make it go. She tried to look sincere as she said,

"It isn't a joke. I really think it could help. You do want me to help, don't you?"

Anna conceded.

"Well then let us begin," Mary offered.

"Now!?"

"Of course! We only have a few hours."

Anna's eyes widened.

"Which should be plenty of time," Mary assured, "And it will be fun, like charades! Now, are you going to wait for him in here?"

"I suppose so," Anna replied.

"All right well you step in there, close the door, and I'll knock."

Anna did as she was told.

Mary stayed outside and tried to compose herself – her heart was beating terribly fast. Eventually she knocked and Anna opened, letting Mary in and closing the door behind them. She noticed Mary's eyes had taken on a strange quality. Anna felt over-warm, the colour rising in her cheeks, but the room had the fire going and perhaps it was due to that. Or was it because of the way Mary was looking at her? Mary's eyes were dilated and primal-looking. Seeing Anna here in this room, awaiting her wedding night, and Mary pretending to be Bates, made her feel peculiarly excited. Not that the feeling hadn't come before when considering her Anna.

Mary had been guarding a secret infatuation for her lady's maid since the day they met. She kept the feeling well hidden, of course. It was a perversion she didn't understand, but which she wrestled with every day, for their position was so intimate yet at once utterly professional. In time, the tensions of holding back had become too great – it was why she hadn't driven Kemal from her room that night. But how naive she was! The Turkish gentleman did nothing to quell her passions, and instead only roused them: she'd been opened up to what was possible, however unattainable, with Anna.

Then Kemal suddenly died. Mary had confided in her to help with the body. She knew Anna would remain faithful and say nothing. Ah, faithful Anna. Her marriage to Bates made Mary extremely jealous, but she was happy when Anna was happy, and so Mary did what she could for her and Bates. Now it was their wedding night and Mary would be helping Bates again, but maybe, just maybe, this would be her chance. Her last chance.

"I suppose Bates would kiss you first, but I'm sure you've had lots of practice with that."

The fire in Mary's eyes faded, and she leaned her head to one side. Anna toyed with an edge of the bed sheet.

"Well," she said, unsure, "you're acting as my husband, aren't you? Then we must go through with...the whole thing."

Anna ended at barely a whisper. Was she being impertinent? And what had brought on these sentiments? Deep down she knew: she wanted to see that look in Mary's eyes again. It was a look of lustful wanting, and Anna longed for such attention. Her wish was granted as Mary's eyes turned dark once more. They also widened in surprise. What is Anna suggesting? Mary thought. Does she, in fact, hold similar feelings to mine? No. Impossible.

The surprised look disappeared, but Mary's eyes maintained their smolder as she moved towards Anna.

"You know, what I am about to do is not very...proper."

Anna smiled hesitantly and Mary continued to approach, her face un-readable. Anna tried to look away, to break the spell her mistress had cast, but Mary was already directly in front of her. All she could say was,

"Well we are only practising, after all."

But when Mary finally closed the gap between their lips, it didn't feel like practising. Lady Mary's lips were soft and slightly cool, so unlike Bates'. The kiss was chaste, yet lingering as they both revelled in the sensation. Mary was the first to draw back, with a concerned look, and Anna opened her eyes, not realizing she'd closed them.

Mary knitted her brow and bent her head forward again, silently asking Anna's permission. Anna answered by grasping the front of Mary's night gown and capturing her mistress's lips first. What had gotten into her? Anna thought.  
She justified herself by remembering that it was Lady Mary who'd suggested the game, and she would, after all, serve her mistress as best she could.

As they kissed, Mary opened her mouth slightly and touched Anna's lips with her tongue. Anna drew back with a gasp.

"Lady Mary! Where did that come from?"

"The Turkish gentleman," Mary grinned, then backtracked. "Did you like it?"

"I'm not sure..." Anna admitted.

So Mary closed in again and tried the same trick. Anna gasped anon but didn't pull away this time. The feeling was curious, but exhilarating, and so _soft_. Mary pressed with her tongue against Anna's lips until she yielded, opening her mouth, and explored slowly and carefully – she didn't want to startle Anna into pulling back again. Yet quite to the contrary, Anna luxuriated in the feeling, returning Mary's efforts with her own tongue.

Mary eventually broke the kiss to caution her maid.

"Well, that is how it begins."

Anna didn't doubt it. She recognized that look in Mary's eyes, which still burned violently, as one of pure, naked hunger, and by the quickening of Mary's breathing, she guessed that this lust was reflected in her own eyes.

"And then?" Anna asked.

Mary was afraid of the "and then". She was afraid of taking things too far. If she started actually touching Anna, would she ever stop? Or would she be cut short by Anna running from the room?

Mary answered tentatively,

"Then? Well we must get more comfortable."

She reached past Anna to taper the lamp, and Anna turned to the fire, rearranging the wood so that it remained at a dull glow. They both took off their shoes. Anna removed her maid's cap and apron, then turned to Mary expectantly.

"Now come by me," Mary gestured.

Anna approached her mistress, hoping for another kiss, but instead Mary took her by the waist and slowly eased her backwards onto the bed, then further back towards the pillows. Mary was now straddling her maid, and Anna couldn't help but marvel at how slight her mistress was. If Bates attempted something similar, he would surely risk crushing her. And how pale Mary was. Anna's hands drifted from Mary's arms to her waist, seemingly of their own accord, while Mary moved her hands to either side of the headboard. They both paused in contemplation.

"I suppose now I should...undress you," Anna murmured.

Mary sat bolt upright. Anna added,

"Well I do it every night, don't I?"

A look of cautious excitement entered Mary's eyes.

"Maybe you _do_ know a bit about how this goes."

She looked slyly at Anna, but Anna was concentrating on Mary's gown. She undid one button after the other, each motion deliberate and full of meaning. Every brush of her finger against Mary's bare flesh sent a pang of want straight to Mary's core. It was all she could do to keep still and let Anna complete her task. But before Anna had finished, Mary started doing the same to her – Anna didn't notice the action until a knuckle grazed her bare belly. She stopped with a sharp breath. If a simple touch of the flesh could make her squirm so, what would happen if..?

Letting her lady unbutton the rest of her dress, she took Mary's hand and rested it between her bosoms. Mary drew in a gasp as she felt how fast Anna's heart was beating.

"Is this all right?" Anna asked. "I feel quite worked up."

"That is exactly how you should feel," Mary assured. Her eyes sparkled. "Are you sure you would like to continue?"

Anna gave a gradual nod and cautiously removed her brassiere. It was the last permission Mary needed. She pulled Anna's dress off her shoulders in one swift motion and descended on Anna's lips. Anna tore at Mary's gown and broke the kiss, trailing smaller kisses down Mary's jaw-line to her neck. Mary swallowed hard, trying to stifle a moan, for Anna had started nipping at her collar bone.

Mary pushed Anna against the headboard and moved her hands down to her maid's breasts. This stopped Anna again, who closed her eyes and let out a shuddering breath. Now it was Mary's turn to kiss her way down Anna's neck, caressing her breasts and playing with the pert nipples.

"Lady Mary, that's..."

Anna's voice had a little catch in it, which drove Mary to dip her head down on instinct and change to lavishing Anna's breasts with her tongue. Anna all but cried out. She bit down on her hand and used the other to tangle in Mary's hair, but soon stopped her movements.

"Lady Mary, wait."

Mary froze and brought her head up slowly, afraid Anna was having second thoughts.

"Your hair, it's still in a braid."

Mary let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

"Well yours is done up as well," she laughed.

Anna removed the pins from her own hair and let it down slowly. Mary watched her intently, bringing a hand up to carefully follow a tress.

"Oh Anna, Bates is quite the lucky man." She curled the tress round her finger. "How beautiful you are."

Anna blushed. She had always considered herself ordinary, at most pretty, but never beautiful...

She brought her hands to Mary's hair and separated the braid. Mary closed her eyes, thinking how this daily and commonplace action would never be the same. She opened her eyes and looked at Anna, and they both simply stared at each other, topless, flushed, hair undone. When had they become so bold? When had they stopped pretending?

Mary brought one hand to the nape of Anna's neck and the other to her waist, kissing her deeply. Anna answered the kiss and accelerated it, weaving her hands through Mary's hair and pulling. They were ever-aware of the hallway outside, though, and tried to be as quiet as they could, stifling each others' moans in their kisses.

Mary's hands began to wander, and she shifted her position slightly to part Anna's legs with her knee. She thrust against Anna's core, and Anna nearly bit Mary's lip at the pressure. Without knowing she was doing it, Anna began to gently grind her hips against Mary's thigh.

Mary decided to take it a step further and slowly moved her hand down Anna's side to her belly, then across her legs to the hem of her dress. She brought the garment up carefully, caressing the inside of Anna's thigh. Anna's breath started coming in little gasps – she was almost at the edge. Mary rucked the dress up to Anna's hips, then began pulling down her undergarments. She skirted round her heat with nimble fingers, not yet daring to enter.

Anna felt so strange, as if she were on the verge of something, some delicious release, but whatever her mistress was doing, she wasn't quite bringing her there.

"Lady Mary, could you..?"

Mary's hand stilled.

"Could I...do this?" Mary replied, and stroked one finger along Anna's folds to her pearl.

Anna gave a cry,

"Yes! Yes, there!"

Mary slid along Anna's folds with two fingers, amazed at how soft and slick she was. She plunged her fingers into the wetness and Anna gave a shudder. She couldn't believe how such pleasure was possible – her want was almost painful.

Mary started a rhythm with her fingers and Anna naturally moved her hips in time. She felt like she were coming apart; like she could only hold on so much longer.

"It's all right," Mary whispered in Anna's ear, and curled her fingers up inside.

It was enough for Anna to let go completely. She bent her head to Mary's shoulder and her mind went blank. As Anna's body went lip, Mary found she couldn't hold back herself and came as well.

They held each other tightly and let the waves of pleasure wash over them, Mary falling to Anna's side and withdrawing from her wetness.

Once their hearts had calmed and their breathing slowed, they simply lay side by side, completely spent and contented. Anna was the first to stir:

"That was quite a lesson."

She turned to her mistress and smiled weakly. Mary turned as well, kissing her lightly on the lips.

"I knew you'd be an exceptional student. Do you think it helped?"

A small sadness crept into Mary's eyes. Anna looked sheepish,

"To tell you the truth, I completely forgot about Bates."

She laughed, and Mary laughed too, the sadness leaving her eyes. Mary took Anna's hand in her own and they both lay, studying each others' faces.  
Anna thought of how she had always loved her lady, as a maid should love her mistress, but how she loved her now in a whole other way. Mary, for her part, simply couldn't believe what had just happened, and felt utterly happy.

And so they lay for quite some time, thinking about nothing from the outside world but each other.


End file.
